Chelsea accused of cheating FFP with long-term contracts - Reports

Chelsea have been accused of cheating the Premier League’s Financial Fair Play rules by handing long-term contracts to new signings.

As reported by The Daily Mail, some of the Blues' Premier League rivals are convinced that the West London club are bypassing FFP regulations.

According to FIFA statutes, teams are only allowed to offer contracts of up to five years.

However, Chelsea have been handing out longer deals on a routine basis in recent months.

The Blues' have signed Mykhailo Mudryk this month on an eight-and-a-half year deal from Shakhtar Donetsk.

Noni Madueke, on the other hand, has committed to the West London giants on a deal for seven-and-a-half years.

French defender Benoit Badiashile also joined Chelsea on a six-and-a-half-year deal earlier this month.

Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella both joined the Blues on seven- and six-year deals in the summer.

Chelsea obliged with FIFA’s restrictions by registering the additional years in each player’s contract as a club-triggered option to extend.

However, their rivals are reportedly convinced that the Blues are violating FFP rules by doing so.

Chelsea have already spent a Premier League-record of a whooping £460 million on new players this season following their latest addition in the form of Noni Madueke from PSV Eindhoven.

Spending such an exorbitant amount of money has only been possible due to accounting rules that permit transfer fees to be spread across the duration of a player’s contract for FFP purposes.

The £88 million outlay on Mudryk will therefore cost Chelsea just £10 million a year when they submit their accounts to the Premier League for FFP monitoring at the end of the season.

The West London club has already signed six players during the winter transfer window and could bring in further reinforcements.

They have been widely linked with a move for Brighton & Hove Albion midfield dynamo, with their opening of £55 million turned down.

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Chelsea eye Ligue1 star as backup to Reece James

Chelsea are reportedly interested in signing Olympique Lyonnais starlet Malo Gusto as a backup for right-back Reece James.

Gusto is a France Under-21 international and has made 15 appearances for Lyon this season, providing one assist.

As reported by The Express, the Blues have been told that the Frenchman would cost them around €35 million.

James has been out for the majority of the season with injuries this time out and the Blues have struggled in his absence.

Trevoh Chalobah has done well of late at right-back but Gusto, being a natural right-back, could be a brilliant addition.